


Infernal Intentions

by The_Consulting_Werewolf



Category: EXO (Band), NCT (Band), 여자친구 | GFriend (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Ghosts, Horror, M/M, Past Child Abuse, Shaoqin is Sowon, Yukhei and Eunha are Krisho's babies
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-26
Updated: 2020-10-30
Packaged: 2021-03-08 20:27:14
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 18,134
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27212668
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/The_Consulting_Werewolf/pseuds/The_Consulting_Werewolf
Summary: It is a new start for Junmyeon and Yifan and their two kids. But something is wrong with the house and it begins affecting everyone.
Relationships: Jung Taekwoon | Leo/Zhang Yi Xing | Lay, Kim Junmyeon | Suho/Wu Yi Fan | Kris
Comments: 6
Kudos: 48





	1. New Beginnings

**Author's Note:**

> Hi, welcome to the Consulting Werewolf's Halloween week. New chapters will be up every day till 31st. The tag is not about Krisho but an OC and you will know as you read.

Junmyeon stretches after he hops down from the van. He hears the other car doors open and he hears his youngest shout, “Wow! A big house!” Junmyeon turns around and picks Yukhei up, who has the biggest grin on his face, gazing up at the two-storeyed house in front of them. His oldest joins and she too looks delighted, eyeing the rather large front yard. Finally, his husband walks up beside them, grinning as well, “Quite nice, eh?”

Eunbi asks, “Baba, baba, can we get a swing?”

Yifan holds his daughter’s hand and grins down at her, “Sure, we can!”

Junmyeon looks around and thinks they can probably fit in a whole playground if they wanted. The house came cheaper than they both expected, that too in such a prime location. The move to Pocheon was perhaps a good decision they both took. Junmyeon found a job at the Korea National Arboretum, while Yifan will be freelancing for a while. Their jobs in Seoul were taking too much out of them and away from their children. Junmyeon peeks at Yifan and then he quickly looks away—no, he will not drag their old problems here. This is a fresh start for him and Yifan too.

It is a beautiful house surrounded by lush pine trees and cedarwoods. It is painted the lightest blue and has a grey-tiled sloping roof. Apparently, some American designer built this, so the house does look more Western than Korean. But the entrance still holds the traditional elements of a stoned path and roughly-hewn steps leading to the porch. The boundary wall, too, is all stone and mortar, not a white picket fence. It has four bedrooms, two on the ground floor and two on the first floor. There is attic space, also a basement, plus a garage at the back. 

Yukhei wriggles in Junmyeon’s hold, which is a way of letting his father know he wants to be put down on the ground. Junmyeon does so and speeds towards the house, running towards the back of the house. He still limps a little but that does not deter him. Eunbi follows, squealing, “Xuxi, wait!”

Yifan puts an arm around Junmyeon and smiles, “They like it.”

Junmyeon puts his arm around Yifan’s waist and he is smiling widely as well, “I’m glad they do.” He turns around and sees the truck they drove in, sighing, “Now, to unpack.”

Yifan groans, “This will take forever.”

Junmyeon just chuckles. No one told them having kids would mean whatever they own can triple in just two years. As he helps with unloading the boxes, he asks, “The furniture looked alright in the pictures, right?”

Yifan nods; the person selling the house assured them the furniture came with the house. Though it seemed strange how there were no extra charges for that, Junmyeon told Yifan to not look at a gift horse in its mouth. It allowed them to travel light. Yifan says, “There’s stuff in the living room, mostly. The estate guy said the bedrooms are largely empty.”

Junmyeon puts the box marked fragile down and says, “Well, Han and Minseok said they will help to send stuff over if we need it.”

Yifan hums, “Well, the storage rent is not due for another two months. If we got to sell anything, we would need to move fast.”

Junmyeon chuckles, “Let’s get inside first.”

An hour later, Yifan and Junmyeon, along with Eunbi and Yukhei, take stock of the house. As the owner said, the sofa set, table, shelves and chairs are there in the living room. Just two of the bedrooms on the upper floor have a bed frame and no mattress. Junmyeon notices how they are both single and are not any bigger than five feet at most. He touches the iron frame in what will be Eunbi’s room and asks, “Fan? Did the house have kids in them?”

Yifan was nearby, in the room that will be Yukhei’s. He hears Junmyeon and walks out, shrugging, “Possibly. Though what I hear, it belonged to an old woman, maybe she had grandkids?” He points back at Yukhei’s room, “Even that bedroom has a small wooden frame.”

Junmyeon grins, “Well, that saved us some trouble.”

Yifan and Junmyeon then walk downstairs. The kitchen is airy with ample light pooling through the south-facing windows. Yifan says, hands on his hips, “We can put the smaller dining table here.”

Junmyeon agrees as he runs a hand over the sunken porcelain sink. The window over it looks into the forest and it is a rather breath-taking sight. Beside the kitchen is also the dining area that has a whole wall replaced with glass. Yifan stands in front of it and sighs, “God, imagine watching this view every day.”

Junmyeon smiles as he walks up to Yifan. He throws his arms around Yifan’s waist and hums, “I really love this place, you know. I think this will be good for us, for all of us.”

Yifan’s smile dims for a second before it returns. He puts his hands over Junmyeon’s and whispers, “Yes, it’ll be.”

The Kim-Wu family venture out into their neighbourhood after they are done unloading all the boxes. They learn about their neighbours, who live in the property at the tail-end of the forest. They are roughly a mile away from the Kim-Wus, but they run into each other at the grocery.

Zhang Yixing and Jung Taekwoon have been living here for ten years with their two daughters, both teenagers and in high school. They seem to be only a few years older than Yifan and Junmyeon. Yixing is delighted to learn that Yifan too is Chinese, meanwhile, Junmyeon learns Taekwoon teaches at the elementary school they have enrolled Eunbi in. The kids too like the couple a lot, and with promises of dinner someday, they part. 

It is just instant ramen for dinner tonight but the kids excitedly dig in. They were already exhausted. Since they had only one mattress in the Yifan and Junmyeon’s room, the family huddles there. The March chill has not really left this place and even with the heating on, as the house settles into silence for the night, the warmth they share makes their hearts content. Junmyeon lightly traces the scar on Yukhei’s forehead and looks over at Yifan, who is busy play-fighting with Eunbi. He swallows down old vitriol and kisses the scar. He tightens his arms around Yukhei and hopes and prays that he gets better too. He does not want to look at his husband and remember the past anymore. Yukhei is here and breathing in his arms, and that is all that matters.

A mile away, Shaoqing looks at the lights in the old Jung house. Well, it is now Kim-Wu, she supposes. She puts down the cup she was washing and turns around at the footsteps. Her sister, Yoorim stands behind her. They are only five years apart but Yoorim, at thirteen, might possibly outgrow Shaoqing one day. Yoorim joins her sister and juts her lower lip out, “The house has new owners now?”

Shaoqing nods, “Appa and baba met the owners in the store today. Two men and two kids, both very young.”

“Like us?”

“Girls,” someone says in a firm tone. The sisters turn around to find Taekwoon glaring at them, “Don’t talk like that. Whatever happened in the house has happened, let’s not bother the new family with the past.”

Yoorim rubs her neck and Shaoqing nods, “Yes, appa, we won’t.” She bites her lip next, “But appa, do they know?”

Taekwoon puts his hands on hips and shakes his head, “I don’t think so. If they did, would they have bought the place?”

Shaoqing turns her head around and looks at the house again. The light has gone out in the kitchen now, she supposes, as another light is turned on in another room. It has been ten years and Shaoqing was only eight but she remembers everything. She shudders a little and hugs herself. Yoorim innocently asks, “Are you cold unnie?”

Shaoqing shakes her head but when her father catches her eye, she knows he knows why she shuddered in the first place. After all, unlike Yoorim, who was only three back then, she remembers being inside that house, she remembers _her_.

_Drip, drip, drip_ . The sound of water running down from the rafters in the basement does not quite reach upstairs. The water in the well, covered with wooden planks nailed shut, swishes and hits the algae-covered sides of the well. _She knows_.


	2. New Friends

Both Yifan and Junmyeon have allowed themselves a week to settle in. They make the list of things they would need from storage and things they need to buy. They spend the whole week getting the house to look more like their home. Their things arrive and so do the new mattresses. Eunbi is excited about the yellow bedspread she got, meanwhile, Yukhei is finally happy to be reunited with his favourite pillow.

Yifan sets up his office in the corner of the living room. A wooden screen provides some privacy. Junmyeon changes the sofa set cover from a dated ditsy print to solid emerald ones. They also get new rugs and some plants to liven up the room. The picture of the family goes over the fireplace. The kitchen too gets a small table for eating and prepping. When Junmyeon puts down their coffee paraphernalia on the counter and all their favourite cups and bowls in the shelves, he smiles. Now, it looks complete.

“Hey, Myeon, can you come down here?”

Junmyeon hears Yifan shout from the basement. They have cleaned the attic first, discovered some old boxes and trunks, which they plan to go through sometime later. The basement was the only one left and Yifan took up the responsibility as Junmyeon worked in the kitchen. The kids obviously followed their baba because they have never seen a basement before.

Junmyeon climbs down the stairs and the damp air surprises him. Though Yifan has opened the narrow window to allow some light into the space, it is still dark without the lightbulb hanging from the ceiling. There are puddles on the floor and he frowns at that. What could have created that? Is there a leak? But he knows all the plumbing is exterior. He finds Yifan, Eunbi and Yukhei looking down at the floor. When he joins them, he sees what they are looking at and he is surprised by it. 

He points at it, his frown deepening, “This wasn’t mentioned, was it?”

Yifan shakes his head, also frowning, “No, this is a hazard.” He crouches since the well in the basement only comes up to his thighs. “The boards look weak as heck.”

Eunbi asks, “Is it a well, baba?”

Yukhei frowns, “What’s a well?”

Junmyeon cups the back of his son’s head and says, “It’s where water is stored.” He also answers his daughter’s query, “It seems so Beanie.”

Eunbi tries to peer closer and Yifan immediately pulls her back. “It’s dangerous, baobei!” He looks at both his kids and says, “Okay, new rules, you two cannot play here. This well is bad, it can hurt you.”

Junmyeon reiterates, “Yes, listen to baba. Don’t play here, ever.”

Yukhei and Eunbi look at each other. They do not entirely grasp how dangerous a well can be but since their fathers look so serious, they nod in agreement. 

When the family is back upstairs, Yifan says, “I think we should keep this door locked.”

“And also find a way to permanently seal that well,” Junmyeon says. Then he huffs, “How could the realtor not mention this?”

Yifan whips his phone out, typing into it, “I’m emailing him right now. This is ridiculous, he knew we had two young children.” Junmyeon looks at Yifan, at his furrowed eyebrows and he sighs internally. Once bitten, twice shy?

In the afternoon, when Junmyeon is painting the backdoor a bright yellow (courtesy of an explicit request by Eunbi—her new favourite colour seems to be yellow) and Yifan is moving an old-fashioned wooden chest he found in the basement in Yukhei’s room, the doorbell rings. 

Eunbi rushes to open it and she smiles when she recognises the man. “Taeil uncle!”

Junmyeon and Yifan come to the door and find their realtor conversing with their daughter. Eunbi steps back when her parents arrive. She skips ahead, determined to find her brother. They were supposed to choose the best pictures to put up in their rooms today. She knows her father and Taeil uncle will be talking important grown-up things and she does not want to be a part of it. 

She walks up the stairs, hand brushing against the smooth balustrade when she feels something on the wood. She halts and looks at the very fine scratches on the wood. She frowns, curling her fingers over the lines. She moves her hand back and forth and wonders who did this. She makes a note to tell her fathers about this. She resumes walking up the stairs when she stops again. She tilts her head and frowns at the shadow on the wall in front of her. Is it her shadow? Yukhei’s? But the shadow looks taller than her, it looks as tall as her appa. She turns her head around and does not find her appa behind her. She turns to look back at the shadow again, only to find it gone. She widens her eyes and juts her lower lip out.

“Noona!” Yukhei shouts from his room. Eunbi shakes her head and thinks it was just her shadow. She remembers when her baba showed her how shadows change size when the sun is too high. As she lingers at the doorframe in Yukhei’s room, she frowns. But the sun is not too high today. Her appa would not be painting the door outside if it was. She stares back at the wall again. There is nothing.

Meanwhile, Yifan and Junmyeon take their realtor, Moon Taeil, downstairs. Taeil looks at the well and clicks his tongue. Yifan crosses his arms and glares at the man, “Taeil, we told you we have two small kids.”

Junmyeon, too, scowls, “There’s only so much we can do keep an eye on them. We do plan to lock the door, but you should’ve informed us.”

Taeil shakes his head. “I didn’t know about this either, hyung. When the owner’s rep showed me the place, they did take me to the basement but they had this,” he points at the well, “Covered under the tarpaulin. I just assumed it was more furniture.”

Junmyeon and Yifan share a look. Taeil does not seem to be lying and they do know how the actual owner did not want to be involved with the property at all. They only met the representative once when signing the down payment. Yifan remembers the young man who showed up at the estate office. He only ever caught his surname, which was Suh and that was not very helpful. He slowly says, “The owner is an enigma, aren’t they?”

Taeil sighs, “You can say that again. When I kept insisting on meeting them, the rep kept refusing. But,” he pulls out his phone, “You can talk to them, they might know something more.” He takes a quick glance around the room and says, “I don’t think the well ties into the plumbing, so you can seal this up.”

Junmyeon saves the number from Taeil’s phonebook and says, “It would still help us to know where this well goes. And if the water is any good or not.” He glances at the boarded-up opening. “Who knows how long this has been here?”

Taeil crouches and peers closer. He says, “The rep did say the original house was built in the forties, right after the second world war. Large-scale renovations were made in the eighties.”

Yifan widens his eyes, “You think the well could have been here since then?”

Taeil nods. “Possibly. The construction looks old.”

Junmyeon suddenly shivers. The basement is not the coldest place in the house but a keen shiver passes down his spine as if someone slipped an ice cube down his back. He hugs himself thinking it must be the draft as he says, “Anyway, we’ll get to fixing this.” He smiles at Taeil, “Thanks for coming.”

Taeil waves his hand. “No, not a problem.” 

When Taeil leaves, Yifan returns to the basement. He had noticed something when Taeil was inspecting the bricks. It was some sort of discolouration on the left side, which, now that he is looking closer, he can see they are initials scratched on the stone. Yifan traces the English letters JJ on the stone and he wonders why it is in English. He knows this country saw many Americans here during the war years, so did one of them build this place? Is Taeil right and this house is actually as old as that? 

Yifan straightens up and takes a look around. There are an empty shelf and some broken crates. They have already moved whatever they could use or throw. However, Yifan is still struggling to understand the random puddles on the floor. He did check, there are no pipes inside the walls. Suddenly, he feels cold. He shudders a little and thinks it must be the damp. There is a whole well here after all. 

He does not turn around as he leaves. And he does not notice the water trickling down the sides of the well, dripping over the initials, pooling at the ground. But when he is at the top of the stairs, he thinks he hears water splashing, so he turns around. There is no water dripping out of anything.

Strange, Yifan thinks. He resumes walking but he stops again when he touches the doorknob. He turns his head around again, frowning a little.  _ Why does he feel like someone is watching him? _

As the week ends and Monday rolls around, Junmyeon is heading to this job today, meanwhile, Yifan will stay home and work remotely from now on. Eunbi is starting her elementary school and Yukhei will be staying home. He is getting homeschooled until he is of age to enrol in an elementary school.

Yifan packs Junmyeon and Eunbi’s lunch. Yukhei is still sleeping, Junmyeon takes a peep into his room. Junmyeon smiles when he sees how the blanket has been kicked to the floor. Yukhei is not the kind to go to sleep and wake up in the same position. He walks inside and sits down on the side, collecting the blanket and draping it over his son again. Junmyeon’s heart swells with the love he has for his son, who looks so small, so diminutive, swallowed entirely by the blue and white blanket. 

In his head, Junmyeon thinks back to last year, when Yukhei was two and how disturbingly small he looked on the hospital bed. He squeezes his eyes shut and curls over Yukhei, putting his head on his son’s back, which rises and falls. Junmyeon’s breathing falls into pace with Yukhei’s, and his heart feels heavy like there are suddenly weights attached to his soul threatening to drag him down into the depth of rage and helplessness he felt back then. He never ever wants to see any of his children on a hospital bed again.

He hears the door creak and he sits up to find Yifan at the door, his face skewed in the expression Junmyeon knows well—guilt, remorse and an overwhelming measurement of anguish. Junmyeon gets up as Yifan whispers, “You know I won’t take my eyes off him.”

Junmyeon doubts that, he truly does, even if he knows he does not need to have any. He looks back at the scar on Yukhei’s forehead and hums, lying through his teeth, “I know.”

They do not say anything else as they move downstairs where Eunbi is finishing her toast with jam. She is dressed in her new school uniform and Junmyeon cannot help but crack a smile at how adorable she looks. He touches the two pigtails, tied with grey ribbons and he smiles, “Oh, I think I need a picture of your big day!”

Eunbi grins, “Baba said I look pretty!”

“And you do!” Junmyeon agrees, leaning down to kiss her forehead. “Are you ready?”

Eunbi wipes her mouth with the back of her hand and nods, “I am!”

As Junmyeon and Eunbi get ready to leave, the older man says, “Wake him up by ten, okay? And take him out to the park nearby, I think he’ll like it.”

Eunbi chimes in, “Appa, can we visit your park?”

Junmyeon chuckles, “It’s not my park, my love. But yes, I’ll take you all one day if they let me.”

Yifan hums, smiling, “I want to go there too, all the pictures look so beautiful.” He pouts, “You’re so lucky.”

Junmyeon giggles, “It’s just garden management!”

Yifan rolls his eyes, “Of a landscape that’s, how big again? A thousand hectares?”

Junmyeon scoffs, “One thousand one hundred and fifty-seven hectares.” He kisses Yifan on his cheek and quips, “I’m so sure I’m going to get lost today!”

Yifan cups Junmyeon’s face and kisses back on his forehead, “Don’t worry, I’ll alert the National Guard.”

Eunbi laughs at her fathers’ tomfoolery. It is just pantomime but she does not need to know that. She gets a kiss from her baba too on her forehead. Yifan cups her face and says, “Have a good day, baobei.” Eunbi beams at him in response. Then, they are off. Yifan stays on the doorstep till the car rides down the gravel path and disappears around the bend, getting covered by the trees and shrubs. He comes back inside and starts clearing the kitchen. As he washes the coffee cups, he takes a deep breath. He knows the next few weeks will be a litmus test for him as a father and as a husband. He cannot bring Junmyeon down again, cannot break his trust and faith in him again.

He hears footsteps behind him and he turns around, expecting Yukhei but he frowns when he finds there is no one. Did he imagine it? Is it coming from upstairs? He wipes his hands down his sweats and walks upstairs. He finds Yukhei’s door open and he vaguely recollects perhaps closing it some minutes ago. But he shakes that off and steps inside the room. Yukhei is awake and sitting on his bed, rubbing his eye. Yifan smiles, “Ah, sleepyhead is finally up!”

Yukhei mumbles, “Mimi call.”

Yifan is confused; he sits down on the bed and pulls down Yukhei’s arm. He cards his fingers through Yukhei’s messy bed hair and asks, “Who’s Mimi?”

“Little girl,” Yukhei slurs as he moves forward to burrow himself in his baba’s chest. Yifan wraps his arms around Yukhei as he mumbles, “Little girl, pink ribbon, like noona.”

Yifan rubs Yukhei’s back and grins, “Did baobei see a dream?”

Yukhei looks at his baba and pouts. His eyes are nearly shut due to sleep and his cheeks are all puffy and flushed. Yifan coos at him inside his head as Yukhei points at the wooden chest and says, “She sleep there.”

Yifan looks at the chest. It is an old one—Yifan bets it must be at least thirty years old and probably belonged to the woman who used to live here. Yukhei wanted it for his room when Yifan found it in the basement. He wanted it to keep his toys in it. Yifan chuckles, “It was a dream, my darling.” He gets up from the bed, Yukhei in his arms. “Now, let’s brush our teeth and eat something.”

Yifan and Junmyeon have decided to send Yukhei to school next year, so this year, they have decided to homeschool the best that they can. After Yifan makes him his breakfast of congee and eggs, Yukhei sits down in the living room with his books, expectedly, already eager. He is very smart for his age and it amuses his parents. Yifan brings his own work over and they sit down. 

A couple of hours pass, Yifan is working on this one WordPress client when Yukhei looks up from his Korean alphabet workbook and asks, “Baba?” When Yifan hums, he continues, “I think Mimi wants to be my friend.”

Yifan decides to indulge his son. He puts the laptop to the side and leans across the coffee table. “Oh, she wants to be your friend?”

Yukhei nods his head, grinning, “She wants to sit!” Then he points somewhere behind Yifan and says, “See? She’s standing right there!”

Yifan does not know why he suddenly is fearful to look behind him. That feeling of being watched returns. He felt it in the basement and he feels it now again. But it is just his son’s fallacy, a mere daydream, so what does he have to fear? He turns his head around and sees nothing, as he knew. He chides himself in his head for his thoughts. Something rolls off the table and clatters onto the wooden floor.

Yukhei grabs the pencil that rolled off and he pouts, “She’s shy.” He points at the stairs leading to his room. “She went there.”

Yifan is feeling distinctly unsettled now. He shakes his head and tickles Yukhei, who squeals. He says, “Okay, let her be. Now, what does baobei want for lunch? Chicken or beef?”

“Chicken!” Yukhei declares. 

Yifan picks him up and they walk into the kitchen. Yifan frowns a little.  _ He feels watched again _ .

Junmyeon has been given a tour and now he slides down his chair in his new office. God, this is a huge place. Will he even manage to remember every last entrance and exit? Out of the fifteen gardens, he will be responsible for five, so there is that respite but even then, he did not think how big this place would be. But it is a beautiful place now that spring is knocking on the door, some of the trees are coming back to life and Junmyeon has a big cherry tree right outside his office and he cannot wait to see it bloom. 

“Sorry to disturb,” someone says and Junmyeon turns around to find his new assistant, Johnny, smiling at him. He raises a lunchbox and says, “Care for some lunch? I can show you our secret lunch place.”

Junmyeon chuckles and grabs his food. He follows Johnny down a stoned path behind the office and they stop in front of a small man-made lake. Junmyeon gasps and Johnny chuckles, “Stunning, isn’t it? This area is closed to the public.”

Johnny sits down on the grass under an oak tree and Junmyeon follows, asking, “Why? It’s so pretty here.”

Johnny points at a cluster of shrubs nearby. “Wild belladonna. We try to trim it but it grows and grows. Now, you know how delicious the fruits look like.”

Junmyeon understands; belladonna is a deadly plant and he can imagine the mayhem a child or an adult unknowingly eating a berry can cause. Johnny shares his kimchi with Junmyeon and keeps talking about the arboretum. Junmyeon has not asked but he thinks Johnny must be only some years younger than him. And he is very handsome, seems to be very dependable too. He must be as tall as Yifan, and broad like him too. His hair is dyed a honey brown and it is long enough to keep falling into his eyes. There is the way he talks, that, Junmyeon realises, makes it very easy to follow and listen. 

Johnny catches Junmyeon staring and the latter looks away, feeling his face heat up. Johnny says, “You know, hyung, it’s nice to have someone around my age here. My last boss was one foot in retirement when I joined.”

Junmyeon smiles, “Well, I hope I do better.” He bows a little, “Please take good care of me!”

Johnny laughs, “Ah, hyung! You’re already doing better!” He raises his almost-finished lunch and beams, “You joined me for lunch. The older boss wouldn’t even dare because of his bad back!”

A swallow calls and Junmyeon looks at the deep blue sky to find the bird flying by. When he looks to Johnny again, he finds the man staring and then looking away, blushing. Junmyeon widens his eyes and decides to cut this lunch short. There is something here and the weight of his wedding ring feels heavier right now. But before he can move, Johnny asks, “Are you married hyung?”

Junmyeon holds his breath as he nods. “Two kids too, a daughter and a son.”

“Ah, that’s nice.”

“What about you?”

Johnny stares at the sky as he sighs, “Haven’t found anyone yet.”

Junmyeon shakes his head. “You’re a total catch, Johnny, I can tell.”

Johnny grins; the wind blows a strand of hair into his eyes as he smirks, “Oh? That gives me some confidence, I guess.”

Junmyeon chuckles, finding it easy again to talk to him. Johnny changes the topic to other colleagues and Junmyeon thinks his new workplace might be good for him too. 

Two more weeks pass and Yifan and Junmyeon have settled in, Eunbi and Yukhei too. Eunbi, who is just so vivacious and adorable, she makes friends with half of the class immediately. Yukhei too seems to like it here and the park by their place. He demands to see the ducks every day and Yifan takes him. April is here, so the cherry trees around the city are in full bloom and Yifan too looks forward to taking Yukhei to the park—it also gives him a much-needed break. 

Junmyeon is busier than before since spring means tourist season. He is trying to catch up and do as much as he can. He is on a probation period, so he is afraid to disappoint his boss. Johnny is a great help and makes every process smoother and easier for Junmyeon. As the evening approaches and the last tourist leaves, Junmyeon and Johnny dive into the office to finish the weekly report. By the time they are done, it is almost nine. Junmyeon came to work in a taxi today, so he clicks his tongue, “Do taxis run this late around here?”

Johnny is putting on his jacket as he says, “Why? I can drop you home. You live in the old Jung house, right? By the Zhangs? I know where that is.”

Junmyeon is about to disagree but then he realises this would save him the time and money, so he nods. Johnny has a motorbike and an extra helmet. Junmyeon laughs as he puts the helmet on. When Johnny asks, Junmyeon replies, “The last time I got on a bike was probably during college.”

Johnny laughs, “Don’t worry, hyung.” He winks, “I’m a good biker.”

Junmyeon rolls his eyes, “We shall see, won’t we?”

Johnny swings his legs over the seat and grins, “Don’t worry, I’m sure your husband will come to beat me up if I ever let anything happen to you.”

Junmyeon’s smile dims a little but he does not let Johnny see that. He gets behind Johnny and the latter starts the bike. Junmyeon does try to not touch Johnny as they go down the road but a turn shuffles him forward and he puts his hands on Johnny’s shoulders without thinking. Johnny shouts over the wind, “Hold tight, hyung, there are a few more bad turns!”

Junmyeon shouts back, “Okay!”

The leather jacket under his palms is soft, worn-out and well-loved. It reminds Junmyeon of a time when he and Yifan had begun dating and Yifan used to own a bike. He sold the bike when they adopted Eunbi and changed it for a sedan, but Junmyeon remembers those days fondly. It was exhilarating to rush against the wind and the way they would be pressed so close. Junmyeon looks at Johnny’s bare nape and becomes mournful. He mourns inside his heart that he wishes to feel like that for Yifan again. And he still did till a year ago, didn’t he? 

He turns his head to the side and watches the lights, the stores and the people blur by him. He wants to love Yifan again without the guilt and hatred of the past dragging him away.

Yifan becomes worried when Junmyeon is not home by dinner. Eunbi and Yukhei have eaten and are washing up for bed. He is about to call his husband when he hears a motorbike sputtering to a stop in the driveway. He pulls the curtains back on the window by the main door and sees Junmyeon getting down from a bike. He is trying to open the helmet, which he struggles with and the guy driving the bike helps Junmyeon. He is tall and pretty big too. Yifan furrows his brows a little. Junmyeon is giggling and his cheeks are flushed light pink. Yifan pushes the curtain back and ignores the sudden burning sensation in his chest.

The door opens as the bike leaves with a ruckus. Junmyeon calls, “I’m home!”

Yifan walks out of the kitchen and forces a smile on his face. “Welcome home. I was about to call you.”

Junmyeon shrugs his jacket off and hangs it on the coat rack by the door. “Oh yeah, tourists are crawling into this town right now. And with all the fruit trees in bloom, people are going slightly crazy.”

“Was that your colleague?” When Junmyeon tilts his head, Yifan says, “I heard a bike.”

Junmyeon parts his lips and nods, “Yes, yes Johnny, my assistant. He’s a great help.”

Yifan nods his head slowly. Johnny. He looks over his shoulder and says, “Have you eaten?”

Junmyeon says, “No, no I haven’t.” He looks at the stairs, “Have the kids eaten?”

“Yes.”

“Have you?”

“No, I was waiting for you.”

Junmyeon feels an odd sensation scratching at his insides. Yifan drags the chair in the kitchen and sits down, shovelling rice into bowls for them. He is quiet, almost too quiet. Did Yifan see him getting down from Johnny’s bike? Junmyeon thinks he knows this sensation—it is like getting caught taking a cookie out of the jar by your parent. He slides into the chair opposite Yifan and they fall into an uneasy silence as they eat. 

Meanwhile, downstairs in the basement, more puddles form. And upstairs, Eunbi does not notice as a shadow follows her as she makes her way from the bathroom to her bedroom. Yukhei, though, sees it. He wonders when did Mimi get so tall and old?

“Sshh,” Yukhei hears something in the shadows by his toy chest. He grins when he sees it is Mimi. She is as old as his noona—or maybe older—but so much paler and thinner. Mimi said she does not eat, which Yukhei is not too sure about. Baba and appa tell him he needs to eat to grow. Does Mimi not want to grow? Mimi comes out from the shadow, a finger pressed to her lips. She whispers, “She’s awake, don’t make any noise.”

Yukhei widens his eyes, whispering, “Who’s she?”

“Mother.”


	3. Some Lies and One Truth

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: some disturbing scenes

A month passes in their new home and things seem to become stagnant. Yifan is working all day and taking care of Yukhei and the house. Junmyeon pitches in whenever he can but he is doing overtime and he often comes home late, often dropped home by his assistant. Yifan hears the engine of the motorbike and he feels that burning sensation in his chest often. In the middle of being so into himself, he does not notice the changes in Eunbi.

She has quietened down. She does not talk about her day with as much enthusiasm as she did before. Yifan would have noticed if he was not wallowing in his self-pity and self-hatred. He keeps thinking back to all the nights Johnny drops Junmyeon home and how Junmyeon laughs, his cheeks flushed as he waves the other man goodbye. Is this Junmyeon’s way of punishing him? He waited a whole year for this then. 

One day, Eunbi comes home and Yifan puts out her afternoon snack. As she eats, Yifan notices a bruise on her hand. He gently picks her hand up and asks, “Beanie, what is this?”

Eunbi trains her impassive gaze to her father and shrugs, “I fell.”

Yifan frowns; he thinks the very worst of things and decides to go talk to her teacher tomorrow, just to check if his daughter is, perhaps, getting bullied. He chastises himself the next moment. He should have paid closer attention. He cups the back of her head and says, “Beanie, if anyone hurts you, you’ll tell baba, right?”

Eunbi tilts her head to the side. “Yes, baba, I will.”

Yifan gets anxious again. There is something so off about his daughter. Usually, Eunbi is sunshine personified, but right now, it is like there are dark clouds looming around her, converging on her and there is a tension around her. Yifan pats her head and says, “Finish your food and then start on your homework, okay?”

Eunbi nods again and finishes her bowl of fruit and sandwiches. Yifan watches her go and he furrows his eyebrows. In the next moment, Yukhei zooms into the kitchen and says, “Baba! Apples?”

Yifan smiles as he cuts an apple into two. He hands one half to his son and the other he eats himself. Yukhei sits on the table, dangling his feet as he munches on the apple. He asks, “Noona sad?” Yifan is surprised; he did not think Yukhei would pick up on his sister’s mood like this. “Mimi says noona is sad.”

Yifan raises an eyebrow. He has started to believe Mimi is Yukhei’s imaginary friend. He had talked to Yukhei’s doctor about this and the woman informed Yifan that imaginary friends are pretty common at this age. Even Junmyeon’s mother agreed when Yifan talked to her a few days ago and shared a story of how Junmyeon had an imaginary friend named Charlie growing up. Yifan swipes the bangs of Yukhei’s forehead and asks, “Is that so? What else does Mimi tell you, hm?”

Yukhei lights up; his eyes widen and his grin is big as he answers, “Mimi very nice baba. She loves me!” Then, his grin dissolves into a pout as he says, “But she very sad. And she says her mama scary.”

Yifan fists his hand under his chin and leans forward, still amusing his son, “Her mama is scary?”

Yukhei nods his head. He points at the empty chair beside Yifan and says, “There, Mimi.”

Yifan turns his head to look at the chair beside him and frowns a little—the chair is not pushed under the table but a little away from it. He did not push the chair back and neither did Yukhei or Eunbi. Perhaps, he is only thinking too much about this. Goosebumps erupt all over his arms and he pulls the sleeves of his sweatshirt down. He looks at Yukhei, who is smiling at the empty space beside his father. Yifan shakes his head; he is letting his imagination get the best of him. There is nothing wrong with the chair beside him and no, the temperature did not suddenly drop, he must have forgotten to turn the air conditioner off. It is May and it gets really hot in the afternoons but gets cooler in the evenings. 

Yukhei finishes his apple and Yifan helps him down the table. He does have some work to do, so he tells Yukhei to bring his colouring book and toys down. He also tells Yukhei to ask his sister to come down if she wants to. Yukhei returns after five minutes and he looks sad when he says, “Noona reading, she doesn’t want to play with Xuxi.”

Yifan’s heart softens; he reminds himself to go pick Eunbi up tomorrow himself (the school has a bus service that drops the kids at the closest bus stop) and check up on her. He pulls Yukhei close and says, “Baba will play with you, okay?”

An hour into playing the dragon in Yukhei’s fantasy tale, Yifan hears the floorboards creaking overhead. He expects Eunbi to come downstairs but instead, the sensation of being _watched_ returns. He turns his head towards the stair and, despite the lights he had turned on all around the house, the shadows seem solid where the lights cannot reach. Yifan finds his gaze focusing where the landing turns into the corridor to the kids’ rooms. He zones out for a moment and his brain imagines a silhouette for him in the dark. It is a figure of a woman, dressed in a knee-length skirt, her hair in a bun.

Yifan blinks, squeezing his eyes shut. When he opens them, there is no figure and he exhales. He should not have drunk the fourth cup of coffee today. The caffeine is making him jittery and weird for sure. He looks back at Yukhei, busy colouring a horse Yifan drew for him. He runs his fingers through Yukhei’s hair and asks, “Baobei, want something to drink?”

Yukhei beams, “Okay baba!”

Yifan leaves for the kitchen. He heats up some milk for Yukhei and makes some chamomile-lavender tea for himself. He also prepares a cup of milk with honey for Eunbi. It gives him an excuse to go check on her. He gives Yukhei his milk, warning him, “Careful, it’s hot, let it cool down, okay?” Yukhei nods and starts blowing on the milk.

Yifan walks upstairs and he has his knuckles raised to knock on Eunbi’s door when he hears harsh whispering, “Do it, do it.” He scowls because that did not sound like Eunbi. He pushes the door open and he is confused to find only his daughter on the bed, sitting up, her book by her feet. He asks, “Beannie, did you hear that?”

Eunbi furrows her eyebrows, “Hear what baba?”

Yifan does not know how to explain it to her, so he does not say anything. He walks into her room and places the milk on the bedside table. He says, “Milk with honey. Xuxi said you were reading?” He crouches to pick the book she dropped—it is the Korean version of Roald Dahl’s _Fantastic Mr Fox_. Yifan smooths the ruffled pages and smiles, “This has a movie on it, did you know?” Eunbi shakes her head and for the first time today, she looks a little more like her usual self. Yifan asks, “Do you want to see it this Saturday?”

Eunbi’s face lights up as she nods and she smiles, _actually_ smiles and it brings some peace to Yifan’s troubled heart. He does not want to disappoint Eunbi as well. Yukhei might be too young to remember but Eunbi would if her baba did nothing to help her. He sees how her ponytail is falling apart and he grabs the brush. He sits down and unties the band holding her hair up. Eunbi positions herself, her back to Yifan, and Yifan combs through the tangles as he asks, carefully, “How’s school going Beannie? You didn’t say anything about your friend, Yuna, right?”

“She is sick at home,” Eunbi sighs, “Teacher said it’s the flu.”

“Oh, is that so?” Yifan wonders how long Yuna has been sick. If Eunbi’s best friend is not coming to school, that could be why she is so upset. Yifan remembers sulking even in high school when his best friend would be absent. “Do you want to call her to check how she’s doing? I’m sure I can find her parent’s contact.”

Eunbi shrugs, “It’s okay. I’m not alone.”

Yifan wants to prod but he stays mum. He braids her hair and says, “Okay.” He kisses the top of her head and says, “Come downstairs if you want, hm? You were about to come down, why didn’t you?”

Eunbi twists her torso around and tilts her head to the side, “I was reading baba, I didn’t leave my room.”

Yifan’s eyebrow twitches but he just smiles, “Okay, I guess baba heard wrong.” He boops her nose and she scrunches her face. Yifan laughs; his daughter is simply the most adorable when she does that (it reminds him of Junmyeon’s nose scrunching habit). “Come down when you want.”

“Okay, baba.”

The evening has descended completely as father and daughter were talking. He moves to turn on the main light in her room when Eunbi stops him, “It’s okay baba.” 

Yifan shakes her head, slightly admonishing, “The lamplight is weak, you’ll hurt your eyes.”

She looks away, towards the window and then she turns to Yifan, “Okay, baba, you can turn it on.”

Yifan follows her gaze towards the window. There is only the sky outside her window and the big frangipani tree. The flowers sway in the wind but Yifan sees nothing else. He turns the light on and slowly walks out of Eunbi’s room. He does not close the door, leaving it ajar. He hears a staggering inhale of breath and it feels like it is near his neck. He puts his hand on his nape and shudders. He quickly whips his head around and he sees nothing. He shuts his eyes and inhales deeply. _What is going on with him?_

Meanwhile, inside the room, Eunbi stares at the shadow by her window, who whispers, “You fathers don’t love you Eunbi, they only love your brother. Only your brother. Only your brother, Only your brother. Only your brother…”

Eunbi’s pupils dilate as she takes a deep, wavering breath. She mumbles, “They only love Xuxi.” Fat tears roll down her cheeks. She remembers a few months ago when she heard her appa say how he was only staying with baba because of Xuxi. She did not understand it but she wonders if they left Seoul because of Xuxi too. She recalls all the days she stayed with grandma because her parents were with Xuxi. “He has to go.”

“Yes,” the voice hisses, now faint but menacing, “Yes, he has to go.”

Eunbi makes up her mind.

Dusk settles fairly quickly here, even though it is summer now. The sky is a rich purple as the darkness like an ink blot on wet paper tries to overcome it. Yifan is in the kitchen now, preparing things for the vegetable soup to go with the rice and other dishes. He also has some eggs on the counter for Eunbi, who loves soft-boiled eggs with her rice. She has been so down lately, Yifan wants to bring her back to her usual self. He hopes this small offering helps. 

He has the things for the stir-fry on the counter as the soup simmers when a sound makes him raise his head and turn around, frowning at the main door. He just heard a car crunching the gravel. He turns the stove to a simmer and he is sure it is Junmyeon’s car. He looks at the time—only six-fifty. Junmyeon has been coming home at erratic times but never this early. The door opens and Yifan says, “You’re home early.”

Junmyeon hangs up his bag and says, “Yeah, the others wanted to go drinking and I wasn’t feeling it.” Yifan hears him enter the kitchen, open the refrigerator for a bottle of water. “Are you making dinner? Can I help?”

Yifan nods, “Just some stir-fry and soup. You can help me with the stir-fry prep.”

“Okay!”

Yifan does not turn around even once when he talks to Junmyeon and Junmyeon is a little thrown by that. He has noticed how Yifan had crawled into himself over the last month. Junmyeon wonders if it is because he only spends time at home on his off day, which is Wednesday (the arboretum stays open during weekends). Yifan only smiles when the kids are around. He does not know what is going on and it scares him a little. As much as everything that happened still affects him, he does not want to lose his husband. 

He is near their room when footsteps rush past him. He finds Eunbi and Yukhei chasing each other down the corridor. He laughs, “Careful guys!”

Yukhei halts and pauses, grinning at Junmyeon, “Okay!”

Junmyeon watches his youngest run off again. It makes him content at how well Yukhei is recovering. He knows it must hurt sometimes and it will cause problems when he gets older, but for now, Yukhei is healthy and happy and that is all everything Junmyeon cares for. He also hears Yifan calling at the kids to be careful. Junmyeon smiles to himself. His family is everything to him, but the way he suddenly feels like he is miles and miles away from his husband suddenly aches him. There is a knot in his chest and it pulsates.

Junmyeon takes a quick shower and he is putting on sweats when he hears a loud scream. He rushes out in his sweatshirt and boxers, skidding across the floor in his bare feet. Yifan, too, rushes out of the kitchen, trying to discern where the scream came from. It was Yukhei. And he screams again. They both snap their heads towards the direction of the basement.

Yifan heads there first and Junmyeon follows, both of them with their hearts in their mouths. They hear Eunbi shout, “I hate you! I hate you!” 

The lock is on the floor, broken and the door is wide open. Yifan rushes down the stairs and what he sees, makes his heart stop. Eunbi is screaming at Yukhei, who is shaking as he sits on the edge of the well. The wooden planks are gone and the smell from the stagnant water makes the older men gag. Yukhei is crying and screaming as he says, “Noona, it’s dark, please!”

Yifan moves forward just as Eunbi shoves Yukhei over. Junmyeon sees the whole thing unfold in slow motion and his heart falls to the floor. Yifan dives over, bending his torso over the edge. Junmyeon feels the air catching in his lungs. He jerks forward and he finds the air returning when he sees that Yifan had caught Yukhei, just by his sleeve. Junmyeon bends forward and grabs Yukhei’s other hand and they both drag him upwards. Yukhei is crying, loudly, and it hurts Yifan, Junmyeon too. They huddle on the floor, the dampness staining their knees as they clutch onto Yukhei. They do not notice Eunbi leaving, nor do they see the shadow on the wall, shaking in fury. 

Yifan gets up first, carrying Yukhei in his arms. But Junmyeon snatches Yukhei away from him, he is suddenly quivering with rage. Yifan does not say anything as Junmyeon marches upstairs with Yukhei, who is sobbing into his shoulder. Yifan fists his hands and he feels anger, first of all. It gets replaced with apprehension a minute later. He looks back at the well and he peers over, the scent of decay and mould hitting him square on. He covers his nose and in the low light, he sees the broken wooden planks floating in the water. Who did that? He cannot imagine Eunbi or Yukhei doing this.

He returns upstairs and finds Junmyeon and Yukhei in the living room where the older man is trying to calm the child. Yukhei hiccups as he says, “Noo-oona wanted to pla-play, the old la-lady is me-mean appa! She’s mean!”

Junmyeon cups his face and wipes the tears and snot away. “It’s okay my love, we got you.” He pulls Yukhei into his arms, holds him tight, just grateful. If he closes his eyes, he sees the blood again, remembers the horrible, paralysing fear again. But Yukhei is okay now, untouched and whole. He feels Yukhei’s small fists bunching his shirt and he breathes in relief. He hears shuffling footsteps and looks up to see Yifan looking at them with pain in his eyes. Junmyeon grits his teeth. He will deal with that later. Right now, he understands what Yifan feels, so he says, “I’ll go check on Beannie.”

Yukhei is passed to Yifan and Yukhei wraps his limbs around his baba like an octopus. Yifan rubs his back and the tightness in his chest unfurls. Junmyeon’s actions some moments ago still hurt terribly, as if Junmyeon stabbed him twenty times through his chest with no words at all. He has failed his husband again. He would have almost failed his son too, this time even direr than the last time. He clutches onto Yukhei and sheds a few silent tears in Yukhei’s shoulder. He carries the boy into the bathroom, where he first cleans Yukhei’s face, murmuring, “Baobei, can you tell me what happened?”

Yukhei has calmed down a lot right now, so he says, “Noona said to play, old lady told her. Noona wanted to show me the, the well. She said it would be fun.”

Yifan frowns; what old lady? He cups Yukhei’s face and asks, “Did you or noona remove the cover?”

“The cover, baba?”

“The things on the well?”

Yukhei shakes his head, “Old lady took them.”

Yifan shivers for some reason. He hugs Yukhei again and rocks his gently as he says, “Do you want to rest now?”

Yukhei mumbles, “Sleep with baba and appa?”

Yifan kisses the top of his head and smiles, “Of course.”

Meanwhile, Junmyeon walks into Eunbi’s room and finds her curled in the middle of her bed, pillow on her head. Junmyeon is furious at her, he would not be lying about that but he also knows that anger is not how he should deal with this, not with her. He sits down and Eunbi removes the pillow from over her head when she feels the bed dip. She notes the furrowed eyebrows and the narrow line of her appa’s lips. She puffs her cheeks up and her lower lip quivers before she breaks down into loud sobs. She wails, “Do you hate me? Does baba hate me?”

Junmyeon is taken aback; was this out of sibling rivalry? But Eunbi never displayed any such behaviour before. He moves closer to her and puts his hands on her shoulders, saying, “My love, why would you think so?”

Eunbi sobs, “We-we left our old home for Xuxi, you and baba would fight and fight last year and I know, I know it was about Xuxi!” Junmyeon widens his eyes, wondering how could Eunbi even know. Yifan and Junmyeon took great care to not fight in front of Eunbi. They even sent her to stay with her grandmother during that awful one month. “And, and you left me with grandma for days!”

Junmyeon’s heart twists into knots in his chest. He pulls Eunbi into his arms and says, “Beannie, we love you very much. To us, you and Xuxi are the same, we don’t love you any less, we’ll never do that, I promise.” He leans back and cups her face, swiping his thumbs over her wet cheeks, “Beannie, you can’t hurt Xuxi like that. That could have been bad, very, very bad. Won’t you feel bad if something happened to Xuxi?”

Eunbi looks down, mulling for a moment before she murmurs, “I didn’t like how Xuxi was hurt…” She widens her eyes and implores, “But appa! I didn’t want to hurt Xuxi! The old lady told me too!”

Junmyeon frowns; he knew that Yukhei had found himself an imaginary friend but he had not heard anything about Eunbi’s. He gently asks, “What lady, my love?”

Eunbi says, “She says her name is Julie, she said she lived here appa, way, way before us.” She curls her hands into Junmyeon’s shirt and sniffles, “I’m sorry, appa. I shouldn’t have done that, I’ll tell Xuxi.” She burrows her face into her father’s chest again, “‘M sorry.”

Junmyeon rubs her back. Maybe, he should schedule an appointment with their paediatrician tomorrow. Maybe, Eunbi needs help that neither Yifan nor he can provide.

Some hours later, with the dinner abandoned, the kids fall asleep. Yifan stays with Yukhei till he falls asleep and Junmyeon stays with Eunbi until she falls asleep. It has been too much for them both. When Junmyeon returns downstairs, he finds Yifan crouched by the basement door. He picks up the broken lock and scowls. Junmyeon tries to hold back the venom as he asks in a low, monotonous voice, “Didn’t we lock that door?”

Yifan straightens up and says, “We did.” He shows the lock to Junmyeon and the latter is confused. The lock is completely broken as if someone had taken bolt cutters and snapped it into two. “I don’t know how the kids could have done this.” Junmyeon shares the same thoughts. Yifan shakes his head, “How did this happen…”

Junmyeon turns his head around and asks, “Where’s Xuxi?”

Yifan answers, “In our room, he fell asleep.” Junmyeon curtly nods and walks away, towards the kitchen. Yifan silently follows; he has seen the stiff movements, the fists by the side of Junmyeon’s body, clenching and unclenching. Junmyeon is distressed, Yifan thinks this is the calm before the storm. He quietly asks, “Junmyeon?”

The question is left unsaid but Junmyeon knows what it is. He turns around and tries to keep his face impassive as he says, “I don’t blame you for this.” Yifan clenches his fist and exhales. It is not relief but he hears the answer to an older question. It is like Junmyeon finally admits that _it_ was his fault the last time around. When Junmyeon catches up, realising the words he said and what they meant, he tries to backtrack, “I didn’t mean—”

Yifan shakes his head. His voice is low and hoarse as he says, “I know, I’ve always known.” He looks at Junmyeon and the latter is surprised to find it shining with unshed tears as he continues, “Who are we kidding Myeon? We’re only together because of the kids, because of how young they are.” He bows his head again and clutches his left arm with his right hand, shaking his head. “I know you don’t want me around. I know you still hate me for what happened, and I get it.” His voice drops even lower, “I see how you smile for that man who drops you home often.”

Junmyeon widens his eyes. He did not think Yifan had noticed Johnny dropping him home every now and then. Junmyeon likes the other man’s company, but...He reaches forward, trying to grab Yifan as he whispers, “It’s not, it’s not what you think it is.” 

Yifan looks up again and the sadness in his eyes punches Junmyeon in his guts. He shakes his head, “It’s,” he inhales, “Alright. I don’t, I don’t care anymore, I think.” Then, Yifan turns around and walks to the bedroom. He finds Yukhei still deeply asleep, oblivious to the storm brewing inside Yifan’s heart. He crawls on to the bed and grabbing his son, he quietly weeps into his son’s back. 

Yukhei stirs awake and he groggily mutters, “Baba?”

Yifan collects himself and says, “Yes?”

“You sad?” He turns around and finds his baba crying. He cups Yifan’s cheek and wipes the tear. “Why is baba sad?”

Yifan curls his fingers around a tiny fist and smiles, “I’m sorry baobei. You got hurt again, I should’ve paid more attention.”

Yukhei juts his lower lip out, furrowing his eyebrows, “But it was the old lady. Baba didn’t do anything.”

Yifan remembers the last time he put his son in harm’s way. He shivers when he imagines what could have happened if they were even a second late tonight. He remembers the blood last time, the stark white hospital ceilings. He pulls Yukhei closer and says, “I’m sorry Xuxi, I’m a bad father.”

Yukhei mumbles, “No, baba is awesome. Baba loves me and I love him.”

It warms Yifan’s heart while it breaks it into tiny pieces too. Perhaps Yukhei will not remember the whole thing as he grows older but one day, he might ask questions. Perhaps Yukhei is too young to know why Yifan blames himself still (what Junmyeon hates him for). But he cannot walk away, cannot abandon the two little souls who love him. He cannot imagine leaving his little family even when Junmyeon does not love him anymore. He will stay for his children and he will do better to protect them. He whispers into Yukhei’s hair, “And baba loves you too.”


	4. The Broken

Junmyeon walks out of the house after that. He simply walks and walks, breathing in huge gulps of fresh air. The night is cooler than the day and he does sweat a little but he does not pay any attention to that. He keeps hearing the words he had been denying to himself over and over again inside his head. 

_“Who are we kidding Myeon? We’re only together because of the kids, because of how young they are.”_

Yifan was right and Junmyeon will not refute that. The last year was nightmarish for them, for Yukhei and this marriage. Junmyeon hugs himself as he walks down the curb, fighting the urge to cry. It is a sham of a life he is living now. But...there is this small part inside his heart that knows that he does not hate Yifan and that he knows that it was never his fault. 

He was not paying attention when he began walking but the streets are empty. It is a residential area and there is a park nearby. He walks towards it, finds a bench and thinks. What does he want from his life? Was moving here, far from Seoul, a good decision? Did he think that perhaps it would help them, as parents and as a couple? Junmyeon suddenly remembers how he has not even kissed Yifan properly in the whole year after that fateful afternoon. He was always clinging to Yifan, seeking his warmth on the coldest days. But even on the coldest nights in Pocheon, Junmyeon shivered alone under the blankets, staring at Yifan’s back and finding himself unable to cover the chasm between them. And who made this divide? It is not like Yifan did not repent, try to fix his mistakes. He even quit alcohol, left his position as the director from the company he was working at. All Junmyeon had to do was try to forgive Yifan and stop the blame game he had been playing. 

Junmyeon sinks into the seat and throws his head back. The stars twinkle in the dark skies and he thinks why Yifan agreed to this plan. Junmyeon had only casually mentioned the job at the arboretum and Yifan had immediately encouraged him to take it, saying the change could be a positive one. But, Junmyeon agrees to himself, that he only wanted a job to get away from Yifan for a while. He would have taken the kids with him, or just Yukhei because he could not trust Yifan with him anymore. He wanted a separation at that point. 

As he admits his own selfishness, at his own refusal to let go, he begins to cry. He pulls his knees up to his chest and tucks his face as he cries. What was this punishment for? Has he hurt Yifan beyond forgiveness?

“Hyung?”

Junmyeon looks up and finds Johnny looking down at him in great confusion. Junmyeon quickly scrubs his face and tries to smile. “Hi, Johnny, I swear I don’t often cry alone on park benches.”

Johnny sits down beside him and shrugs, “But park benches at night are great places to have a good cry, I think.”

Junmyeon laughs but it turns into a cough. He covers his mouth and cleans his face some more. He says, “What brings you here?”

Johnny points at a high rise some yards away, “I live there and I often come to this park to jog at night since I don’t have any time in the day.” He then turns to Junmyeon and softly asks, “What brings you here, hyung? Talking always help.”

Junmyeon sighs and his whole body quivers at the inhale. He murmurs, “It’s my husband.”

“Trouble in paradise?”

Junmyeon chuckles but there is no mirth in it, “It isn’t exactly paradise now.” He looks forward at the lights blinking in the various apartment complexes around the park. “But it was, at least until a year ago, I suppose.”

He hears Johnny sitting back and crossing his legs. The younger is focused on him as Junmyeon starts, “Yifan, Yifan has been such a constant in my life that I don’t remember what or who I was before him.” He laughs a little, this time in fondness for the past as he looks at Johnny, “Do you understand that kind of an all-consuming love? Where you know you want to live and die with this person? Yifan is my person. Or was. I don’t know anymore.”

“I don’t I can, yet,” Johnny admits with a low chuckle.

Junmyeon smiles, “It’s quite the ride.” He looks back at the sky as he continues, “I met him in college. He was a sophomore, I was a freshman. We had common friends and soon, we started hanging out with these friends around. In some time, Yifan finally asked me out and I, of course, said yes.” He laughs, twisting his fingers in his lap, his mind thrown back to a winter afternoon after college when he was twenty and Yifan was twenty-one, a whole era ago. “I still remember how nervous Fan was, stuttering, blushing and avoiding eye contact. I could tell he was genuine and his face was the exact way I felt in my bones. We started dating and after eight years of that, we got married.”

“A year of marriage and we both decided we want to adopt. So, Eunbi came home. After two years, the woman who helped us told us about a child who would need foster care. Turns out the woman died in childbirth without saying who she was and who the father was. We agreed to take Yukhei, just to take care of him.” He sighs, his voice dropping and getting emotional, “He was a baby, so small, just so adorable and loving. And Yifan really connected with him because he had somewhat of a similar experience, you know. His father abandoned his mother and him when he was four. I knew Yifan would find it hard to let go when the time came and, honestly, I didn’t want to let go either. We had both fallen in love with this beautiful boy. Even Eunbi was happy to have a sibling. Perhaps luckily for us, the father was located but he didn’t want the child. We started the adoption process for him.”

Junmyeon frowns a little and swallows the lump in his throat, “The trouble began a year later, I think. Yifan got promoted and I was accepting more weddings and parties for my little flower shop. But there was a burden Yifan was carrying and work was stressing him as the days went by. The day” he takes a shuddering breath, “...it happened, I woke up with a foreboding. Everything was wrong that day. The day shift guy couldn’t make it, so I went to work earlier than expected. Yifan didn’t go to work that day. I thought the kids would be okay. I even said we should go out for a movie and dinner later.”

Junmyeon leans forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “In the afternoon, I had to come home and I don’t even remember the reason why. And I came home to find Yifan on the street outside our house clutching something small and bloody to his chest.” He covers his face with his palms and heaves a little as the image flashed in his mind. “It was Yukhei.” He removes his hands and clasps them in front of him. He does not notice how his hands shake as he recounts, “There was blood pouring from his head and leg and hand. Our neighbours had called an ambulance and quickly explained what happened. Apparently, a car had sped into the road and Yukhei was in the way. She was sorry for not noticing the licence plate. Her screams had pulled Yifan outside.”

Junmyeon takes several breaths and feels a reassuring hand on his quaking shoulders. “Yukhei was lucky, so incredibly lucky none of his vital organs were damaged. He split his forehead open and had two compound fractures on his arm and leg. He stayed in the hospital for four months.” He bites his lip. “And when we were in the ambulance, I noticed Yifan’s bloodshot eyes and the smell of whiskey on his mouth. When he finally said that Yukhei had wanted to play in the park and he had refused to take him. So, Yukhei probably thought he could do it alone. He was two, Johnny, not supposed to go anywhere without his dads around.”

He sits back and rubs his knee, “I don’t have to tell you that Yifan was drinking during the day after a serious call with his employee. He was stressed and annoyed, so one drink turned into three.” His voice catches, “I was so, so angry. I think I shoved him hard enough to make him fall to the floor. The hospital staff had to take me away from him. The next four months were awful. I stayed with my mother, Eunbi stayed with me. I spent most of my time in the hospital, even staying some nights over. On the insistence of my mom, I talked to Yifan after three months and I forgave him. Or so I thought.”

Junmyeon licks his lips. He has not really talked for so long about that day in a while. He closes his eyes and takes another deep, deep breath. “Today, when my son was standing at the edge of the well and his sister was screaming at him, I recalled his small body, covered in blood and how close he was to death if no one had seen the accident.” Since he had his eyes closed, he misses the way Johnny frowns at the words he says. He misses the way something like turmoil flashes in Johnny’s eyes. “Yukhei would have died if we were even a moment too late. And I couldn’t keep it off my face. Yifan finally said what I had been avoiding thinking—that the only reason I haven’t left is that it would kill the kids if I took their baba away from them.”

Finally, Junmyeon lets the lump in his throat crawl up and it pours down hot and wet down his cheeks. “But won’t it kill me too? I don’t know if I can ever love anyone like I love Yifan. I know, I know it’s hard to let go for me. That even if years pass, even if I convince myself that the car hitting my son wasn’t my husband’s fault, will I ever let go of the fact that my husband chose to drink that day instead of paying attention to our son?” He lets Johnny pull him close as he sobs, “I love him, I love Yifan, I don’t want to leave him Johnny but how do I make myself stay?” 

Johnny does not say anything and lets Junmyeon cry on his shoulder. It goes on for a while but Johnny is thinking about what Junmyeon said. _A well?_ Johnny chews on the inside of his cheek. He looks at Junmyeon, who had straightened up and is looking at the grass at his feet. He clears his throat, “I think, for now, you should go home. You’ve had a big day and I think your husband would want you to be with him and your children now.” He gets to his feet, “Let me walk you home.”

Junmyeon gets to his feet and shakes his head. “No, no, don’t bother.”

“But—”

Junmyeon lightly grasps Johnny’s elbow and shakes his head again. “I got this. And I guess one thing at a time, right?”

Johnny smiles a little and nods. “Time doesn’t heal all wounds, hyung, but it does fade the scars over time and when we look at them, we don’t remember the pain, just the fact that we got through it.” He holds Junmyeon’s hand and squeezes it, “So will both of you.”

Junmyeon murmurs, “Thank you, Johnny.”

They bid each other good night and Johnny walks back to his apartment with a frown on his face. Junmyeon, on the other hand, feels lighter talking about the mess in his heart as he walks back home.

Back home, Yifan is deeply asleep when a light tremble wakes him up. He blinks himself awake to realise the house is shaking. Is it an earthquake? He is about to wake his son up, grab his daughter and run outside when he stops. He realises it is not the floor that is shaking but the ceiling. He widens his eyes. _Eunbi!_

The door was slightly ajar when he had crawled into bed with Yukhei. As he reaches towards the doorknob, the door shuts close, the lock falling into place. Yifan halts for a moment, taken aback. There was no wind and he did not even get to touch the doorknob, so how? Then, he hears a piercing scream from above. He shouts, “Eunbi!” From above he hears her shout back, “Baba! Baba! Help!” 

Yifan starts pushing into the door with his shoulder. He hears the sheets shuffle behind him and Yukhei sits up, rubbing his eyes, “Baba? Is that noona?”

Yifan groans as he heaves against the door again. He hears the wood crack a little as he answers, “Yes!” He sees Yukhei move on the bed out of the corner of his eyes. He raises a hand and shakes his head, “No, you stay!” He heaves some more and the door finally gives. He registers a hot flash of pain in his hand but he pays no attention to it. He has to get to his daughter! 

Back upstairs, Eunbi had tears and snot running down her face. She had woken up five or so minutes ago because her bed started to shake. She was terrified and she was about to run for her baba but then the door locked on its own and the old lady appeared. She hit her face, slapping right across. Her cheek smarted and it pained her some more. Then her bed lifted off the floor and everything began to move as if it was picked up by a wild wind. She keeps screaming.

Suddenly, the door to her bedroom breaks open, the bed falls down on the hardwood floor, cracking it, and she scrambles down the bed towards her baba, who is staring at the bed, trying to make sense of what he saw. But his befuddlement only increases when he sees Eunbi running towards him but something yanks her hair from the back. When Yifan focuses, he sees the dark shadow. Its dark, shadowy fingers tighten in Eunbi’s hair. Yifan is afraid, so very afraid and his knees feel heavy. But Eunbi cries, “Baba!”

That breaks whatever petrified trance he was slipping under. He runs forward and with all his might, tears Eunbi away from the shadow. The shadow screams and Yifan realises it is a woman. He does not wait to see what she wants to do next. He picks Eunbi up and runs downstairs. He finds Yukhei peeking out of their bedroom and he picks him up as well, grunting, “We’re leaving!”

The front door opens and Junmyeon steps inside. He finds Yifan on the foyer with the kids in his arms and he frowns in confusion. He sees Eunbi’s condition and before he can ask, Yifan quietly says, “We need to go. I’ll tell you everything later.”

Junmyeon wants to ask but a loud, shrill scream shakes the whole house. He grabs Yukhei and widens his eyes, muttering, “What was that?”

Yukhei turns his head around and points at the top of the stairs, whispering, “The mean old lady.”

His parents turn to look and what they see strikes fear right into their hearts. Junmyeon feels his blood freezing over and Yifan feels like his muscles are paralysed, especially his tongue because he cannot make a sound. A woman, old, skeletal glares at them from above. Junmyeon knows, _knows_ , she is not alive, no one can walk around with flesh melting off their bones. And the decaying scent of death and damp attacks his lungs, gagging him. Then, she screams again and the table from the living room flies right off the floor and crashes against the balustrade. Yifan is the first to break from the stupor. He pushes Yukhei into Junmyeon’s arms and says, “Run for the Jung-Zhang house, they’re the nearest.”

Junmyeon nods and with Yukhei in his arms, he takes off. He hears Yifan behind him, catching up to him. They cover the mile in ten minutes and Taekwoon was facing the kitchen window when he saw the two running towards them, so he opens the door and does not ask as he ushers them in. Yixing and his two daughters take one look at the couple and the kids and they immediately rush around to make some tea and find blankets. 

It is Shaoqing who sees Eunbi, shaking and crying, with the huge red print across her face, and mutters, “She found you, too, huh?”

The adults hear her and Junmyeon looks at the girl’s parents. Taekwoon and Yixing share a tense, worried glance and the latter says, “We can talk after the kids are asleep.” He looks at Yoorim, “Honey, take them to the guest room please.”

Yoorim escorts the Kim-Wu couple to the guest bedroom. Eunbi refuses to let go of Yifan, so he stays until she falls asleep. Meanwhile, Yukhei quietly says, “Mimi said the old lady hurt her too.” He gingerly touches the handprint across Eunbi’s cheek and pouts, “Like this.” His lips wobble. “She’s a bad lady.”

Junmyeon and Yifan look at each other. They have never experienced anything like this in their lives. Ghosts, the supernatural is something they have only seen in television shows and movies. Neither of them are big fans of horror but what they saw back then defied every logical explanation. It was a ghost and their children’s imaginary friends were _not_ figments of their imagination. Yifan whispers, “Taekwoon and Yixing know something, you heard the older girl, right?”

Junmyeon nods, “I did.”

When Yukhei falls asleep as well, Yifan and Junmyeon head back to the living room. The eldest and her fathers are in the kitchen, mugs of piping hot tea on the dining table. The youngest decides to leave the older people alone and walks towards the guest room, to keep an eye on the kids. Taekwoon smiles, “Please sit down. Did you guys have dinner?”

Junmyeon touches his growling stomach as he realises how the last thing he ate was his lunch of instant ramyeon. Yifan too left the dinner mostly unmade in the kitchen. Taekwoon tells them to sit down and puts bowls of warm soup and reheated dumplings. As they eat, Yifan finally asks, “You guys seem to know what’s going on.”

Yixing sighs, “Yifan, Junmyeon, we’re sorry, we should have told you something when we met you but we couldn’t.” He takes a deep breath and says, “Ten years ago, we lived in that house.”

Yifan and Junmyeon look at Yixing with wide eyes and mouth agape. Taekwoon says, “We, we saw her too.” He wraps an arm around Shaoqing and says, “She hurt Shaoqing, red handprints like that all over her body.” He closes his eyes as he shudders, “Yoorim was too little to remember, but when I found her standing by the edge of the well, I can’t, I can’t explain how I felt…”

Yifan finishes for him, swallowing that knot in his throat, “Like your heart had dropped out of your body and you were already seeing the darkness in the corner of your eyes? Like there was suddenly an iron fist around your lungs squeezing all the air out of it?” When Yixing and Taekwoon look at him, surprised, Yifan resumes, nodding his head, “We found Yukhei like that tonight.”

Shaoqing hugs herself and says, “I remember her all too clearly. She was so mad, so filled with rage. I thought she would kill me.” She looks at Yifan and then at Junmyeon, “You have to leave uncles, it’s not a good place for children.”

Yifan and Junmyeon look at each other again. Junmyeon wraps his fingers around Yifan’s under the table. Yifan gives a gentle squeeze, their silent conversation is clear as he says, “I agree. We don’t want to stay there either.” 

Taekwoon nods, “I know there are some good places by the city centre, we can talk tomorrow morning.” He looks at the window and sees the house a mile away shrouded in darkness. Even then, it pulsates with evil like it is looking right back at Taekwoon, upset and furious that its newest prey had escaped as well. It did not get them and Taekwoon cannot allow it to get to the new family as well. He says, “Meanwhile, please stay here.”

Junmyeon and Yifan can see their house too from the dining table. Yifan squeezes Junmyeon’s hand again and they both nod their heads.


	5. The End

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> warning: mentions of death

Yifan is sitting in the guest room, on the bed, his elbows on his knees as he types an email to Taeil. He is sure the realtor is asleep right now but he better call back when he sees this email. Yifan does not care if they do not get the whole amount back, they just want to leave. He looks back at Yukhei and Eunbi, now tangled with each other, deeply asleep. He cards his fingers through Eunbi’s hair and he gingerly touches the mark on her cheek. It looks angry and he feels anger in his bones when he thinks of the thing that did this to his daughter. 

“Is it too bad?”

Yifan looks up and finds Junmyeon standing by the door. He enters and shuts it behind him. He sits down beside Yifan and inspects the mark on Eunbi’s face. There is something in his hands, which turns out to be a first aid kit. Yifan frowns at it and Junmyeon points at his right fist, whispering, “You’re hurt.”

Yifan looks down at his right fist and sees the dried blood caking his knuckles. He stretches the skin and winces a little. He must have hurt himself when he was trying to break down the bedroom door. He says nothing as Junmyeon pulls his hand on his lap and begins cleaning the blood. The antiseptic hurts and Yifan hisses a little in pain. Junmyeon mumbles, “Sorry,” and starts blowing air on the cuts. Junmyeon peers closer and says, “You got wood splinters in there, wait.” He rummages through the white plastic box and finds a pair of tweezers. He carefully removes each splinter. The silence between them, right now, is not quite filled with tension like it probably would be before. When Junmyeon has finished cleaning and is wrapping the gauze, he quietly says, “For what it’s worth, there’s nothing going between me and Johnny.”

Yifan closes his eyes and takes a deep breath. There they go. He tries to pry his hand away from Junmyeon’s grip but it does not work. Junmyeon pulls both of Yifan’s hands onto his lap and says again, “There’s nothing going between me and Johnny.” Yifan looks at Junmyeon and he sees the sincerity burning in his eyes. Junmyeon looks down at his fingers curled around Yifan’s wrist as he mutters, “He’s not you.”

Yifan inhales and his whole body shakes. He understands what that means. He slowly asks, “You wanted him to be me?”

Junmyeon squeezes his eyes shut and nods his head. Yifan sees a tear roll down his cheek. “He has that stupid bike you had and he’s as tall as you. For a moment, I was taken back to when we were younger, in college, when we didn’t have all this shit floating over our heads.” He opens his eyes and something tugs at Yifan’s heart when he sees those beautiful dark eyes glimmering with tears. “But then, I remembered, it was my stubbornness that caused us all this trouble, didn’t it?” He scrubs his face, sighing, “I know, I know what happened wasn’t caused by you. You apologised for your drinking and you’re still apologising and here I’m, refusing to forgive you. If you can turn a new leaf, why can’t I?”

Yifan knows that no amount of repenting will turn back time and return the Yifan and Junmyeon of the past to now but to hear that Junmyeon was also struggling somewhat like him, it lessens the weight on his chest. He pulls Junmyeon closer and the latter pressed his face into his neck and quietly sobs. Yifan kisses Junmyeon’s neck and mumbles, “I get it. If I can’t forgive myself, how can you?”

Junmyeon pulls back and cups Yifan’s neck, saying, “I love you Yifan, unlike whatever you may think of me.”

Yifan’s heart thuds in his chest, threatening to burst right out his ribs. He swallows because he knows Junmyeon means it, he means what he has been saying for so long. He sees the hope in Junmyeon’s eyes and something like that blooms in his chest as well. He rubs Junmyeon’s cheek and mumbles, “I love you too.”

They have not said those three words to each other in so long that the dam finally breaks. Yifan and Junmyeon are not sure who moved first, but their lips seek each other out and they have no choice but to melt into the kiss. The months of yearning while still living under one roof had been unbearable, to say the least. A stray laugh like sunlight spilling through a narrow window, the adored creases of lines around the eyes would be kissed away before but in the last few months, Yifan would hesitate, so would Junmyeon.

When they pull back for air, Yifan rubs Junmyeon’s lower lip, now well-kissed and red. He whispers, “Sometimes, you would end up cuddling me in your sleep and it was so hard to not kiss you then.”

Junmyeon chuckles as he curls his fingers around Yifan’s hand and kisses his palm. “Every time Xuxi or Beannie said something hilarious and you would laugh with your whole body, I wanted to kiss you too.”

Yifan lightly presses his lips on Junmyeon’s and the other man responds with the warmth and affection Yifan is familiar with. This is not really a resolution but the words left unsaid spell out one thing: they are in this together and isolating each other will not help them anymore. If Yifan struggles to forgive himself and Junmyeon hates his own mind turning against himself, they cannot heal from their nightmares without the other’s help. Perhaps a third party could be good for them, Yifan makes a note of it. Junmyeon is leaving kisses on his nose and cheek when they both hear the sheets moving. They part and turn their heads to look at Eunbi stirring awake and sitting up. She looks at her fathers and mutters, “Baba? Appa?”

Junmyeon reaches for her and pulls her on his lap. He rocks her gently back to sleep, humming a lullaby. He is not entirely sure of what happened with her but hearing all of that from Shaoqin was enough and it terrifies him. He mumbles into her hair, “My brave little girl.” Eunbi responds only by burrowing into his chest.

Yifan lies down beside Xuxi and rubs his back as he watches Junmyeon and Eunbi. They will be okay, he tells himself, all of them will be okay.

Taeil was out of town but Yifan and Junmyeon were not keen on waiting around for him. They left their children under the Zhang-Jung sisters’ care as they walked back to their house to pack up the necessary items. On the way, as they take the path through the sparse woods, they decide to only pack clothes for now. They will have to return for everything else later. In the meantime, Taekwoon had been kind enough to contact his friend who had a flat he could rent to the Kim-Wus till they settled the business with their house. 

Junmyeon shivers when a wind picks up. It is a warm summer morning but the closer they get to the house, the worse it feels. Yifan senses it and he entwines their fingers together. He says, “Ghosts don’t come out during the day, right?”

Junmyeon looks at Yifan and swallows, “But we don’t really know that now, do we?”

“Together,” Yifan kisses a knuckle, “Together in this.”

Junmyeon is not feeling entirely brave but he is slightly more courageous than before. He looks at the house looming before them. The frangipani is in bloom and the wind makes the top of the tree sway. For a second, Junmyeon thinks he sees a face in the window. But it is not of a woman, a young girl. He quietly asks Yifan, “Xuxi’s imaginary friend wasn’t an old lady.”

Yifan frowns, “No, it’s a young girl.”

“Do you think, she, she’s also a…?”

Yifan nods his head slowly. “From what we know now, I’d bet my life on that.”

Junmyeon takes a few deep breaths and says, “Let’s go. I don’t want to waste any extra time in there.”

They enter the house and the first thing they see is the living room looking like the aftermath of an earthquake. Junmyeon sighs, “We’ll figure out this later. You take Beannie’s room, I’ll take Xuxi’s. Then, we will pack some things for ourselves.” 

Junmyeon would not like to be left alone in the house but he knows splitting up will get the job done faster, so even though he says those words, he hopes Yifan refutes them. Unfortunately, he does not and nods before disappearing into Yukhei’s room. Junmyeon had heard from Yifan how the woman was here that night before he came back home. Yifan had only heard her voice and had chalked it up to the wind but now he knows better. Junmyeon quickly grabs the biggest trolley bag and puts all of Eunbi’s wardrobe in it. What he cannot fit, they will manage later. He picks some of her books too, knowing how being away from them makes her upset.

He is zipping up the bag when he hears Yifan call, “Myeon? Come here.”

He drags the bag out of her room and walks inside Yukhei’s room. He finds Yifan on his knees in front of the old chest they found. He had turned it around and he looks up when Junmyeon enters. He whispers, “Look here.”

Junmyeon joins him and sees the childish scratching spelling out a name in English. He murmurs, “Mimi, Mimi, Xuxi was talking about her?”

“She was real, then,” Yifan says and he shivers. “She didn’t hurt him, I think. She was hurt.” He had found something else, something he did not notice the first time around. “Look at this,” he opens the lid and shows Junmyeon the aged marks under it. Junmyeon touches them and widens his eyes, “Are these scratches?”

“From nails, most probably,” Yifan adds. He sighs, “I asked Xuxi. He said Mimi is scared of the mother.”

“Mother?”

“She is evil,” a faint voice behind them has them turning their head around. Junmyeon gasps and falls on his butt. Yifan slowly gets to his feet. The spectre is a small girl, no older than ten perhaps. She is frail, thin with her cheeks sunken in and dark circles under her eyes. The early morning summer sunlight filters right through her. She smiles a little, “I’m Mimi. I had a name but I don’t remember what it was.”

Junmyeon clutches Yifan’s ankle and looks at him. Yifan catches his gaze and helps him up. Junmyeon swallows, muttering, “Xuxi told us about you.”

“He’s nice,” she steps a little closer. She bows her head, “I’m sorry, I couldn’t come to save him. If mother saw me, she would hurt me again.”

Yifan joins some dots. His voice falters when he asks, “Did she, did she hurt you before?”

Mimi points at the chest. “She locked me in there.” She touches her chest, “When I woke up, I was already like this.”

Junmyeon feels his eyes welling up. Yifan too feels his heart twist in pain and worry. To know that a woman who murdered her child was trying to hurt their children makes them be more fearful but grateful that they pulled Yukhei and Eunbi out of this house. Suddenly, Mimi gasps and turns her head around. She looks at them with wide eyes as she says, “Hurry! She’s coming out of the well!”

“Well?” Yifan asks as he grabs Yukhei’s bag. 

“That’s where she lives!”

The words are hardly out of her mouth when the house begins shaking again. She vanishes but Junmyeon and Yifan do not get to express their surprise at that. They grab the bags and Junmyeon takes a small tumble as they rush down the stairs. The stairs were shaking too much and Junmyeon proceeded to skid down the last four steps. A sharp pain blooms from his ankle but he swallows the pain as he gets up. Yifan abandons the bags and throws Junmyeon’s arm around his shoulder. “We need to get out of here!”

That is easier said than done because in the next moment, the main door slams shut and darkness descends. When Junmyeon looks out the window, he sees a dark mist swallowing the sunlight. He grabs onto Yifan and sobs, “Fuck, Fan, now what?”

“Let’s try the backdoor, come on,” Yifan says. His knees are not doing well and the fear is nearly paralysing him. All he can think of is getting Junmyeon out of here. But as they hobble as quickly as they can towards the kitchen, the dining table flies off the floor and crashes against the backdoor. The table bursts into a thousand splinters and the debris blocks their path. The windows in the kitchen start vibrating and soon, shards of glass are flying everywhere. Some slice into Yifan’s arm and Junmyeon’s leg. They both stumble to the floor in pain. Then the screaming starts.

It is shrill, it hurts their ears and they hold each other as they remain on the floor, praying for all of this to stop soon. Yifan pulls Junmyeon closer to him and Junmyeon sobs into his chest. The other things in the kitchen are flung over their heads. Plates and glasses crash, knives fly and embed into cupboards and walls. Yifan watches the cup Junmyeon gave him on their first dating anniversary crash to the floor and become smithereens and he closes his eyes. Is this how everything ends?

The screaming stops, only to be replaced by the sound of wet footsteps. Yifan and Junmyeon turn their heads behind to find a woman with pure wrath in her eyes looking at them. She is mad that her newest targets were taken away from the house. Junmyeon and Yifan shift away from her until their backs hit the cupboard under the sink. Junmyeon cries, “Leave us alone!”

All he gets as an answer is the woman growling at them. She reaches for them and Yifan looks away, curling himself over Junmyeon, who cannot look away, staring right back at the horror that is about to kill them. 

But suddenly, there are more footsteps and Junmyeon gasps when he sees Johnny swinging a crowbar through the spectre. She screams, as if in agony, and disintegrates. Johnny shouts, “Hurry! Before she comes back!”

Yifan is taken aback to find Junmyeon’s colleague standing in their kitchen. He murmurs, “What?”

Johnny exhales, “I’ll explain later. Come on!”

Yifan hoists Junmyeon up and Johnny takes the lead, crowbar in hand as they make their way through the water and broken furniture towards the door. Johnny had hacked his way through it and it lies on the floor, broken into three. When they are finally outside in the sunlight, Johnny ushers them into his car. He looks at their injuries and says, “To the hospital then.”

As Johnny starts the car and backs out of the driveway, Junmyeon asks, “What are you doing here?”

Johnny sighs again, “I’ll explain everything. You two need medical attention first.”

An hour later, as Yifan and Junmyeon sit in a double-bed hospital room bandaged up and smelling strongly of antiseptics, Johnny sits down on a chair and says, “Taeil told me how you wanted your money back.” He dives into his backpack and fishes out a cheque. Junmyeon recognises it as the bank from which they took their loan for the house. Johnny extends it to him, “Here, I didn’t even cash it because I was afraid.”

Yifan walks up to Junmyeon’s bed and takes the cheque. He sits down beside Junmyeon and his frown deepens as he asks, “But, this would mean you’re the owner.”

Johnny nods, “I am.”

Junmyeon widens his eyes, “How long, you knew? Like,” Junmyeon feels betrayed, “You  _ knew _ ?”

Johnny puts his head in his hands and takes a few deep breaths. When he looks back at them, he looks crushed and defeated. “When I was seven, my father relocated here. This house belonged to his maternal grand-aunt, a woman named Julie Jung. His mother, who it belonged to originally, never talked about this woman, and when she died, we didn’t bother to learn why.

Johnny looks at the wall clock beside Yifan’s bed. “It didn’t take long for us to feel like something was wrong with the house. Julie was found drowned in the well, so my father closed that thing first. But every night we would find random puddles around the house.

“Things came to a turn when my brother, Minhyung, arrived. We saw the little girl first and then Julie herself. One day, Minhyung wasn’t in his bassinet and we found him in the basement, on the edge of the well. My great-grandaunt had put him there. We realised we needed to know more about this woman.

Junmyeon and Yifan were listening to Johnny with bated breath. Johnny continues, “We learned some terrible things, hyung. Julie Jung moved here with her father and sister back in the forties from the States. She was sixteen and her sister was two years younger than. Apparently, when the sister disappeared, everyone in the family knew it was her who killed the sister by pushing her into the well. She hated her, thinking all her father’s attention was on her younger sister.

Johnny chews his lip. “When he died, she grew up to be a sad, lonely woman. Then, for some strange reason, she started fostering children in that house. The war had brought in a lot of orphaned kids who were half American and half Korean and no one wanted them. Some of them returned in one piece to the welfare, some of them went missing and Julie said they ran away.

“Until it was the girl named Mimi’s turn.” Yifan and Junmyeon share a look. “She went to the school nearby and she was a brilliant student, so some of the teachers really liked her. When she wasn’t coming to school for a whole week, the Maths and Language teachers got worried. When Julie explained that Mimi too was a runaway, the teachers weren’t convinced. They could smell something spoiling in the whole house and soon, they forced their way upstairs where they found poor Mimi dead and decomposing in a toy chest.” Junmyeon claps his hand over his mouth. He could not help but feel awful for the poor girl.

Johnny continues, “To evade arrest, Julie flung herself in the well, drowning herself the same way she drowned her own sister. Later, the police dug up three skeletons in the backyard. It was the kids she said had run away. No one remembered all of this by the time the house came into my father’s possession. His mother never talked about it. She herself was only a distant cousin to Julie, so she chose to not bother. We never knew until we started digging into it.

“My father moved out and put it up for sale. I was in Chicago when I heard a couple had bought the house. However, three months later, I hear the house is up for sale again. This couple had two daughters.” Yifan understands Johnny does not know the Jung-Zhang family personally and perhaps, the couple also does not know about Johnny.

The younger man continues, “I knew I didn’t want to live in this house, so I put it up for sale. Taeil handled everything, so I didn’t even ask who bought it. I sent my brother in my pace to meet the new owners. I was surprised to learn later on, at work, that Junmyeon hyung lived there with kids. I got worried. But I didn’t hear you say anything, so I thought that maybe all of this had stopped. But when you didn’t come to work today and after you said what happened to your son last night, I put two and two together and came over.”

Junmyeon is looking at his feet, confused about his emotions. Yifan is seething but he knows Johnny cannot be blamed alone. Would they have still bought the house if they knew? No. But no one told them and they did not bother themselves to do their own research. They were so ready to escape Seoul and try to bring some normalcy into their lives. He looks down at the cheque in his hand and sighs. At least, there are things they can salvage. 

Johnny gets to his feet and bows, “Hyung, this is my fault. I should’ve been more involved. But I assure you, you’ll get back everything you gave me and I’ll take care of moving your things too.” He straightens up and says, “Let me do this for you.”

Yifan and Junmyeon share a look. Junmyeon holds Yifan’s free hand and squeezes it, the decision taken. Junmyeon looks at Johnny and says, “Okay.”

**_Eight months later_ **

“Xuxi! No!” Yifan shouts as he takes off after Yukhei, who has grabbed a cupcake from the box and sped across the backyard. “Come on! Put that back! That’s for your guests!”

Junmyeon grabs his husband and laughs, “Let him be, it’s his birthday.”

“What if we fall short of food?” Yifan frowns.

Junmyeon tightens his arms around Yifan’s torso and laughs again, “It’s okay, Fan, we can always rush down for more.”

Yifan presses his lips together and says nothing. He watches Yukhei with icing all over his mouth and his sister, Shaoqin, and Yoorim play with him. He turns four today and Yifan is pleased to see how Yukhei does not limp like before anymore. The snow has been light last night and the sky is a bright blue. It is cold but the sunlight keeps them warm. It is a nice day and watching his children enjoy themselves makes him happy. Soon, Eunbi smears the icing on Yukhei’s mouth on his forehead and Yoorim quickly intervenes, producing a paper napkin from her dress and wiping it off his forehead. Yukhei is shooting heart eyes at her, which makes Yifan laugh, “I think our son has a crush.”

Junmyeon sees it too, the look of complete adoration and grins, “He might grow up with a whole noona kink, though. I hear first crushes leave quite the mark.”

Yifan shakes his head, “That would explain why he was showing Yoorim and Shaoqin his famous aegyo dance.” He laces his fingers through Junmyeon’s and laughs, “He’s going to grow up to be a total cheeseball!”

Junmyeon puts his head on Yifan’s arm and giggles, “Just like his baba then!” Junmyeon frees his husband and skips backwards, a taunting smile across his face.

“Hey!” Yifan takes off after him. They run into the kitchen and Yifan corners Junmyeon at the counter. Junmyeon tries to flee but Yifan blows a raspberry on his neck and Junmyeon erupts into loud giggles, “That tickles Fan!”

Yifan hoists Junmyeon up and Junmyeon squeaks a little but on reflex, he wraps his legs around Yifan’s waist, who kisses up his neck, his jaw. He bites down on his lower lip and looks back at the open door and the big windows as his face warms at the position they are in right now. He lightly slaps Yifan’s shoulder and says, “Fan, stop, we have people here.”

Yifan juts his lower lip out but he does obey. He pulls back and looks at Junmyeon and at the lovely blush all over his cheeks and nose. He kisses one cheek and says, his voice lower than before, “Later, then.”

Junmyeon thinks even the roots of his hair are sizzling. He shoves Yifan away and hops down from the counter. Yifan grabs Junmyeon again and he is grinning and there is nothing innocent about that. Junmyeon presses his palms on Yifan’s chest and crinkles his nose, “Cheesy.”

Yifan shrug, “Well, Yukhei had to get it from someone.”

Junmyeon is about to kiss the smug smile away when the bell rings. They detangle themselves and when they reach their foyer, they find Johnny standing on the porch, a huge bag in hand. Junmyeon eyes it and groans, “Please tell me that’s not the Transformer toy he wanted.”

Johnny widens his eyes and looks affronted, “Xuxi used his puppy eyes, what was I supposed to do?”

Yifan takes the bag and shakes his head, grinning, “You’re one weak man, Johnny.”

Johnny pouts, “Oh, well.” He points at the bag, “I got something for Beannie too, it’s in there.”

Junmyeon pulls out the book Johnny got for her and he smiles, “Oh, she’ll love it!”

Johnny joins the party and Yukhei and Eunbi squeal with joy. Over these last few months, the children have taken to Johnny a lot and so has the older man. After helping them find this house and helping them pack and move (Julie did not appear with Johnny around, though Yifan did see Mimi waving at them when they left the house for the last time), Yifan and Junmyeon chose to forgive him and he became a part of their lives. 

Meanwhile, Yifan and Junmyeon began their weekly visits to a couples therapist. Six months ago, they went on a proper dinner date. Three months ago, they were both surprised to find themselves making out like teenagers on the couch, their television show abandoned. Last night—Yifan smiles a little as thinks about it—they ended up doing more than making out and heavy petting. They are learning to find each other again and appreciate all the little things they loved about each other. It has not been easy but Yifan knows it will work.

In some hours, the party had winded down and all of Yukhei’s primary school friends leave and as Shaoqin and Yoorim help the birthday boy unwrap his presents in the living room, the adults share some wine in the kitchen. Taekwoon asks, “So, you’re really breaking it down?”

Johnny nods as he takes a sip of the white wine in his glass. Junmyeon and Yifan too look at Johnny. They know the younger man has decided to demolish the house and give the land for free to the National Forest Department to use it as they see fit. Johnny says, “No more families in that house, hyung.” Johnny also knows now that the couple living in the house before were Taekwoon and Yixing.

Yixing nods, swallowing his drink, “Maybe, that’s for the best.”

Johnny chuckles, “You know, I think I feel her watching me whenever I visit the property.”

“Well,” Yifan says, “That’s obvious. She will never get what she wants.”

Yixing hugs himself, “And that’s how it should be.”

Junmyeon holds Yifan’s hand under the table. The past is like a bad dream, they never want to look at it again. As they hear Eunbi and Yukhei laugh from the living room, they feel relief in their chests. Everything will be alright from now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What's better than haunted house horror? Especially one where one isn't even sure if the horror has ended? Will Julie actually ever leave? What do you think?
> 
> PS. Thank you very much for reading! (ʘᴗʘ✿)


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